William J. Caunitz (1933–1996) was a New York City Police Department officer who used his own experiences to write best-selling thrillers.
After serving in the United States Marine Corps, and working for an insurance company, he joined the NYPD in his twenties. He first worked as a patrolman, and eventually rose through the ranks to become a lieutenant, followed by an assignment as a detective squad commander. Caunitz wrote with great authenticity when describing precinct day-to-day life in his novels. The New York Times has compared him to Joseph Wambaugh.[1]
After many rewrites,[2] his first novel One Police Plaza came out in 1984. It was made into a television film starring Robert Conrad in 1986. In 1988 the film got a sequel, The Red Spider. His novels usually center around one or two police officers that follow detailed police procedures to solve a crime, and he also used some sensational elements of thrillers. He did not write with an outline, preferring to let the plot evolve unpredictably as he was writing.[3]
Caunitz died in 1996 from pulmonary fibrosis[4] His last novel, Chains of Command, was half-completed at the time of his death and finished by Christopher Newman.
